The sprinters' revenge in the heart of cobbled classics season
Scheldeprijs
Scheldeprijs is where the pure fast finishers reclaim the spotlight between the cobbled Monuments, turning flat Belgian roads into a high-speed reckoning.
Next edition Apr 7, 2027
- Location
- 🇧🇪 Belgium
- When
- Second Wednesday in April
- Course
- One Day
- Most recent winner
- 🇧🇪 Tim Merlier (2026)
- Category
- Men’s 1.Pro
About Scheldeprijs
Scheldeprijs is a Belgian one-day bike race on the ProSeries calendar, positioned in the narrow window between the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. First held in 1907, it remains the oldest road race in Flanders and serves as the spring's clearest opportunity for sprinters.
Founded in 1907, Scheldeprijs is Flanders' oldest road race and has long served as the sprinters' counterpoint to the cobbled Monuments.
This is the race where leadout trains matter more than cobblestone survival skills. Scheldeprijs sits in the middle of classics season but refuses to play by classics rules, offering sprinters who endured Flanders week a chance to win on their own terms. The flat parcours and midweek timing create a tactical clarity rare in Belgian racing: control the finale or lose to positioning chaos.
Scheldeprijs winners
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 🇧🇪Tim Merlier |
| 2025 | 🇧🇪Tim Merlier |
| 2024 | 🇧🇪Tim Merlier |
| 2023 | 🇧🇪Jasper Philipsen |
| 2022 | 🇳🇴Alexander Kristoff |
| 2021 | 🇧🇪Jasper Philipsen |
| 2020 | 🇦🇺Caleb Ewan |
2027 edition
Apr 7, 2027. The Scheldeprijs 2027 is on Wednesday, April 7, from Middelburg in the Netherlands to Schoten in Belgium. The start moves from Terneuzen because of work on the Western Scheldt Tunnel. Tim Merlier won the bunch sprint in 2026, his third win in a row.
Scheldeprijs route
The course runs across flat Flemish terrain without the climbs or cobbles that define the surrounding calendar. Sprint teams must organize early to shut down breakaways on exposed roads where crosswinds can fracture the peloton before the finale. The race typically compresses into a high-speed positioning battle in the final 10 kilometers, with leadout trains jockeying for the front before the last turn. Crashes and late positioning errors cost more here than raw power, and teams that fail to control the approach often watch a late attacker survive. The winner usually comes from a well-drilled leadout or a perfectly timed solo jump in the final 200 meters.
What shapes the race
Pure Sprint
The flattest major race in Belgium. The Scheldeprijs is built for sprinters and historically rewards the fastest finisher in a bunch kick.
Leadout Battle
Team leadout trains define the finale. The winner is the rider with the best positioning at 300 meters.
Schoten Finish
The finish in Schoten near Antwerp on a wide road gives sprinters a clean run to the line.
Spring Calendar
Held in April during classics week, the Scheldeprijs gives sprinters their own showcase while the climbers contest the Ardennes.
Signature landmarks
A flat sprint race along the Schelde river and through the Antwerp suburbs.
- Finish
Schoten
The finish town near Antwerp provides a wide, flat sprint run-in that suits pure fast finishers.
- River
Schelde
The race takes its name from the Schelde river that flows through Flanders toward Antwerp.
History
Memorable editions
- 2025
Merlier makes it two in a row
Tim Merlier defended his title with another dominant sprint, establishing a period of Belgian ownership.
- 2023
Philipsen at his peak
Jasper Philipsen won at the height of his sprint dominance, the same season he swept multiple Grand Tour stages.
Iconic victories
Tim Merlier
Back-to-back wins (2024, 2025) made the Belgian the current king of the Scheldeprijs.
Jasper Philipsen
Two wins (2021, 2023) confirmed the Belgian as the fastest sprinter of his generation.
Marcel Kittel
Multiple wins in the mid-2010s when Kittel was the dominant pure sprinter in world cycling.
Mark Cavendish
Won the Scheldeprijs three times, more than any other modern rider, during his years as the world fastest sprinter.
Eras and records
The sprinters classic since 1907.
Most wins (modern)
Mark Cavendish, 3
First edition
1907, making it one of the oldest one-day races in Belgium
Sprint identity
Known as the sprinters classic, the race has been won by a bunch sprint in the vast majority of editions